Ministries Of The Holy Spirit Series

Sermon Series: ¡§God, The Holy Spirit¡¨

Sermon #2 ¡§Ministries of the Holy Spirit

Text: I Corinthians 2:10-13

OPENING JOKE: ¡§The Holy Spirit is Better¡¨ A nice elderly woman was leaving church after the Sunday services. As she was in the back she shook the hand of the pastor and said, ¡§That was a good sermon¡¨. The pastor replied, ¡§Oh, it wasn¡¦t me, it was the Holy Spirit¡¨ to which she replied, ¡§Oh, no, the Holy Spirit would have done much better than that!

INTRODUCTION: Welcome to our continuing study on the Holy Spirit

Last week we began our discussion outlining the person of the Spirit and the revelation of His indwelling the believers at Pentecost. You will remember how we pointed out that:

ľ In the Old Testament, God the Father (Yahweh) is revealed

ľ In the Gospels, God the Son (Jesus) is revealed

ľ In Acts, at Pentecost, God the Holy Spirit is revealed

All three being eternally existent in the Godhead, but making Their purposes in the plan of redemption known through individual revelations

***Today we are going to continue our study by looking at the various ministries of the Holy Spirit

Like I said last week, to go over the complete ministry of the Holy Spirit is almost impossible, as His role is so comprehensive ¡V so I have chosen a few powerful points within His ministry to be our focal point in this study.

Let¡¦s first look at His Ministry of:

I. Illumination

a. Let me begin by giving two definitions:

i. Revelation ¡V God revealing Himself through inspiriting men to write down His Word; This is how the Bible came about

ii. Illumination ¡V God making clear through His Spirit that which has already been revealed

b. Now, I said that to say this: The Holy Spirit is no longer giving ¡¥Revelation¡¦ but He now gives us ¡¥illumination¡¦

i. God¡¦s revelation of Himself is complete

ii. We have His perfect Word, written by men who were inspired to write its contents

iii. We no longer need any revelation, because the revelation is complete

c. This is why in the last book of the NT we have such a stern warning against addition and changes to the Biblical text

i. Revelation 22:18 ¡§For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.¡¨

ii. These warnings represent the close of the New Testament Canon

iii. Anyone who tampers with it, adds to it, or alters it are in danger of the judgment described in these verses

d. I often here people say, ¡§God gave me a ¡¥revelation¡¦¡¨ ¡V but this really is not the case

i. If God has opened your eyes to a truth contained in His Word, this is not ¡¥revelation¡¦ but ¡¥illumination¡¦

ii. He has simply illuminated their heart to something that is already revealed about Him

1. I realize this is an argument in semantics

2. ¡§You say tomato, I say tomato¡¨ or ¡§You say illumination, I say revelation¡¨

3. But this is more than just semantics, it goes to the heart of what is meant

e. Because many have said God has given them ¡¥revelation¡¦ that totally contradicts His Word

i. There have been entire books written in addition to the Bible by men who claim ¡¥Divine Revelation¡¦

1. These books contain non-Biblical revelations of God

2. They more often than not contradict His Word

3. Proverbs 30:5-6 says, ¡§Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him. Do not add to His words, Lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.¡¨

ii. But this idea of extra-Biblical revelation is not just found in the extreme sects, but also in many Christian Churches

1. One prominent televangelist said that God revealed to Him that He could have died for the sins of men instead of Jesus

2. Another claimed God spoke audibly to him and said He would take his life if he didn¡¦t raise 8 million dollars

3. I listen to different Christian radio stations. On one the other day I heard a woman who said that if you came to her all day seminar, by the end of the day your would be receiving revelation from God

iii. Stories of God speaking to people, contrary to His Word, run rampant through circles where the Scripture is not seen as God¡¦s final revelation

f. THE BIG QUESTION: Do we believe that the Bible is the complete, final and authoritative Word of God, given under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit?